Oil/Gas Pipelines
First Look: Discover Advanced Mobile Leak Detection detects pipeline gas leak immediately
(UI) — The key to discovering and repairing natural gas leaks before they become catastrophic is more vigilance, and that’s what Heath Consultants is striving to achieve with its new Discover Advanced Mobile Leak Detection (AMLD) system.
Burleigh County will require permits for pipeline set to store carbon underground
County commissioners voted 4-0 Monday night with one member absent to approve the proposal. Commissioners, however, acknowledged the ordinance is likely to draw a lawsuit from carbon-capture pipeline developer Summit Carbon Solutions, the Bismarck Tribune reported.
EXA deploys Infinera’s fiber optic solution across European submarine cable system
This project creates a unique fiber optic network connecting Milan, Tirana, Athens, Sofia, and Istanbul with high-quality, high-performance, and ultra-reliable digital infrastructure.
Kansas lawmakers fear oil spills from Keystone pipeline due to frequent earthquakes
Several lawmakers said they are nervous about the pipeline in the Wichita area, about 160 miles south of the Washington County spill site. The area began experiencing an increase in earthquakes in 2013, after Keystone opened its Kansas pipeline segment, tied to activities associated with hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in oil and natural gas production.
HDD and HDPE — The Perfect Match
The latest revision of ASTM F1962, approved in 2022, contains a significant change by providing the physical properties for the most-recent, high-density polyethylene material, PE4710. This material is significantly tougher than older, previous polyethylene products, facilitating successful completion of more complicated, difficult maxi-HDD projects.
FERC Moves Forward Tentatively on Pipeline Rates, Affiliates
A blog post from the law firm Akin Gump stated: “FERC policy often uses the ‘last litigated ROE’ as a proxy for just and reasonable rates when it is developing initial rates for existing facilities being acquired by a new pipeline.
Construction entities call for punishment for pipeline attacks, improved mapping in pipeline safety
(UI) — The Distribution Contractors Association (DCA) and the United Association of Union Plumbers and Pipefitters (UA) have published a letter urging Congress to take action to address the enduring problem of physical attacks on critical energy infrastructure.
Editor’s Log: Stampede
(UI) — The President Biden Administration’s narrative has been to mercilessly shun, blame and attack “big-oil” companies, gas companies and any pipeline ever built as the root of environmental evil. The President has used his bully pulpit to supplement his unending rules and regulations against oil and gas, as the way to achieve the “carbon-free” goal of his zealous backers.
NA Pipeline Construction Outlook
(UI) — Seldom has a new year arrived with the degree of supply and demand uncertainty facing global energy markets at the start of 2023. Months of soaring oil and natural gas prices gave way in late 2022 as oil demand projections softened on recessionary fears and Europe’s months-long buying spree filled its natural gas storage levels to near capacity.
Washington Watch: EPA Ups Ante on Pipeline Methane Emissions
(UI) — The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has once again proposed to tighten the vise on interstate pipeline methane emissions. Its supplemental Clean Air regulatory proposal, in November this year, doubles down on a never-finalized recommended rule issued in November 2021, which the transmission industry slammed for unrealistic emission controls.
EPA, TC Energy agree to clean up oil discharge from Keystone pipeline rupture
(UI) — TC Oil Pipeline Operations Inc. has entered into an agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to clean up the oil discharge that occurred Dec. 7 in Washington County, Kansas, as a result of a rupture in a section of the Keystone Pipeline.
Damaged section of Keystone pipeline to be examined following explosion
(UC) — TC Energy has until early March, or 90 days after PHMSA issued a corrective action order, to complete the metallurgical test in order to determine the primary factors that contributed to the line's failure.
PODS releases new data model, standard with ILI module for pipeline operators
(UC) — The Pipeline Open Data Standard (PODS) data model provides the database architecture pipeline operators need to submit regulatory reports, store critical information, analyze pipeline systems data, and manage geospatial data in a linear-referenced database which can be visualized in any GIS platform.
Company starting to recover oil from Kansas pipeline spill
The company operating a pipeline that spilled about 14,000 bathtubs' worth of oil into a Kansas creek during a test for potential problems is recovering at least a small portion of the crude.
Washington Watch: FERC Rejects Environmental Concerns About Gas Pipeline Projects
(UC) — The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) continues to dispatch environmental objections to pipeline projects. Even Chairman Richard Glick, who had originally made reducing greenhouse gas emissions his guiding light, is turning a deaf ear.
Oil spill in rural Kansas creek shuts down Keystone pipeline
Canada-based TC Energy said it shut down its Keystone system Wednesday night following a drop in pipeline pressure. It said oil spilled into a creek in Washington County, Kansas, about 150 miles (241 km) northwest of Kansas City.
HardRock Directional Drilling expands business with Raymond Construction partnership
(UI) — HardRock Directional Drilling LLC has partnered with J&J Raymond Construction LLC, creating the new entity HardRock Infrastructure Services, the company announced on Dec. 1. This partnership expands HardRock's reach into the natural gas utilities industry and adds high-quality crews and equipment to the HardRock fleet.
Biden asks Congress for $500 million to modernize underground oil reserves
(UC) — In a document submitted to Congress, the Biden administration has requested $500 million from Congress to modernize the U.S. strategic petroleum reserve, Reuters reported. When petroleum is taken out and replaced, the hollowed-out, underground salt caverns where the SPR oil is kept may shift and need repair. The facility's steel pumps and equipment are moreover continuously blasted with corrosive, damp, salty air.
NTSB: Valve leak fueled 2021 pipeline blast that killed 2
A valve leak and a spark of unknown origin combined to cause a North Texas natural gas pipeline explosion last year that killed two workers and injured two others, federal investigators said.
US military to begin draining Pearl Harbor pipelines
The U.S. military said it’s ready to begin draining 1 million gallons of fuel from three pipelines as part of an initial step toward closing a World War II-era fuel storage facility that leaked petroleum into Pearl Harbor’s tap water last year.
July 2021 pipeline break leaked 714,000 gallons of wastewater, not 36,000
A wastewater spill from a pipeline break last year in the northwestern North Dakota oil patch was 20 times greater than first reported, the state Department of Environmental Quality said.
Jury decides $10.4 million award for Portland natural gas explosion trauma
Lawyers for gas leak investigator Eric Rader and stylist Kristen Prentice said both suffered life-altering changes, including post-traumatic stress disorder, after an excavator hit a buried gas pipeline Oct. 19, 2016.
Plastic Pipes Institute introduces free online Conduit Design Calculator
Plastic Pipes Institute introduced a free online calculator that allows you to input your project details and tells you the safe wall thickness for your intended installation.
Illinois firm settles for $2.5 million in 2017 fatal pipeline construction explosion case
An Illinois company has agreed to pay $2.5 million to settle safety charges from an explosion that killed three welders and injured seven at a Louisiana containerboard mill in 2017, as well as other alleged safety violations.
New report shows oil spills from offshore transportation way down
Oil and natural gas spills from tankers and pipelines in U.S. waters dropped dramatically from the last decade of the 1990s to the one from 2010 through 2019, according to a federal report.
Common Ground Alliance white paper highlights natural gas distribution stakeholders’ role in damage prevention
Common Ground Alliance announced the publication of a White Paper based on research among natural gas distribution stakeholders that points to this group’s influential position in the damage prevention industry and actions stakeholders can take to drive damages down.
Judge approves $230 million settlement in California oil spill case
The corroded undersea pipeline ruptured north of Refugio State Beach in Santa Barbara County, northwest of Los Angeles. All American Pipeline later estimated that 142,800 gallons spilled.
NTSB opens public docket for investigation into fatal Coolidge, Ariz. pipeline rupture
(UC) — The National Transportation Safety Board opened the public docket Thursday as part of its ongoing investigation of the fatal, Aug. 15, 2021, natural gas transmission pipeline rupture and fire near Coolidge, Arizona.
Natural gas pipeline fire in water SE of New Orleans
Federal agencies investigated a natural gas pipeline explosion that started a towering blaze in a lake southeast of New Orleans on September 8, 2022. Preliminary information indicates a barge broke loose from its mooring and hit the pipeline, according to the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
FERC Rate Change Posting Proposal Controversial
Responding to a June 2021 petition from interstate pipeline customers, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has proposed upgraded website posting requirements when pipelines file for a Section 4 rate change.
- Tunnel boring machine ‘Clack-A-Mole’ nears one-third completion in Oregon outfall project
- Explosion in underground PG&E vault leaves one dead in Richmond, Calif.
- Tennessee pipeline gets initial FERC approval despite environmental concerns
- Sinkhole in Texas town accrues over $800,000 in sewer rehabilitation costs
- Water and Sewer Damage Awareness Week highlights infrastructure challenges
- Wisconsin proposes new PFAS drinking water standards to align with federal rules
- Elgin, Ill., joins EPA drinking water initiative to accelerate lead pipe replacement
- Dog River pipeline replacement in Oregon improves water supply with new HDPE pipe
- GasTracker Accurately Locates Plastic Gas Pipes
- Union County, Ga., breaks ground on $20.5 million fiber broadband expansion project